Ga Rei: Exodus Nine (IC)

[Spinach]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

“I had thought to save time, but I see now that such a thing is hardly a concern.” Voice echoing over a frozen banquet hall Saki’s eyes scanned the room. Searching for movement, she found none. The world itself was still as a painting; save for the eyes of her contracted Demon.

Was it through his sheer presence and magnitude of his power that the Demon Prince could peer into the world of frozen time, or was the being spared by Fujimoto Kayo’s will, as she was?

The Remnant’s eyes met Belial’s and the crimson clone stood up from her seat at the table.

“Do you desire a private conversation, Fujimoto-san? I’m afraid there are still peering eyes, though I cannot tell you that it matters.” The flaming Saki calmly walked down the table, toward another clone of herself.

A clone that was currently in the act of throwing its hand as ‘rock’ in her match against Redgrave.

“Whatever reaches my ears will reach his eventually, anyway.”

Calmly, as if it was a matter of course, the unfrozen Remnant took the other’s frozen hand and uncurled her fingers, reshaping her hand into the form of ‘paper.’ Ever quick on the uptake, never one to let opportunity pass her by, Saki took full advantage of the ‘moment’ Kayo had frozen her in. All the while, the girl kept her eyes on Mister Redgrave. She couldn’t help feeling like somehow, he could see into the world of frozen time. Of course, she didn’t let that stop her from trying to cheat herself into a win at all. He had cheated her, after all.

So she would repay the favor.

Even if woman’s intuition told her there was far, far more to this man than appearances let on. It was almost like he was something much greater than the peril faced by her world, a man who had slid out from between the pages of his own story and fell into another one, destined not to fall until he returned to the where he belonged.

But in the end, it was all just a feeling.

Instinct. Chuunibyou instinct. Nothing more.

Without missing a beat, the Remnant turned back to Kayo.

50%

“Half human… no, half god. Sired by the King of Heaven, along with…” The Remnant left the name of the girl’s mother hanging. The older girl’s name alone gave it away, not to mention that familiarity she saw in her face. There was no need to say the Weather Reporter’s name. “To think such a thing is possible. On and on, this Saki Ryuumonbuchi learns something new with every passing day. Enlightenment has drawn closer at an alarming pace since the arrival of the one Who Lacks Worth.”

[Airen]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

You could have sworn Redgrave had winked at you.

While it could have easily been your imagination, a thing that your mind had come up with as you had opened your own fingers into paper to ensure your victory once this little break was over, it is still something that your mind seems to process as a subliminal action.

It had been in less than an instant, but that right eye had closed and opened again in an amused light...

At least, you thought it had, but then again...

Chuunibyou Syndrome.

"The world is full of crazy things," neither confirming or denying her heritage, as you seem to have reached an answer all on your own, the young woman instead seems to keep at the friendly chatter, "Human-Divine Unions are perfectly possible, as are Human-Demon ones; it's not entirely unheard of even in this world."

The tea cup is set down, and a head comes to rest on her own intertwined fingers.

"Even beyond that some interesting magic remains intact; Merlin is sealed in a cave in Cornwall, Archangel Michael guards the Vatican, Anubis is trapped in the Sphinx I believe, and the Soul Sea has a physical entrance connected to it... There are likely a few more examples, but I haven't left Tokyo in many years so the specifics of any more escape me."

Her gaze turns to Belial:

"He can listen; I did not believe I could completely stop a Prince of Hell with just this much anyway."

She is not suited for demonic combat outside of one or two specific cases in which her powers were toxic to her adversary, but even so, she had possessed some pride in this particular ability; but stranger still, just laughed it off now that it was being resisted to such an extent.

"The one who I don't want listening in on this is my father."

Saying this instead, the girl's smile fades to a line-

"To be frank, him inviting me here is a warning sign."

-that shifts to weaker, worried eyes.

"It's best that I'm kept a secret; as I'm sure you can imagine. But if he's purposefully making my existence known to someone outside the immediate family... I think..."

Another pause, then:

"...That he thinks something is going to happen to him; or that he's going to do something stupid."

[Spinach]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

“It would make sense to keep hidden the daughter of one such as he, infamous for eating those that he would call his children.” Understanding immediately the older girl’s implications, Saki’s burning visage nodded. “Just as well, t’would be only sensible to unveil that daughter to the enemies of that God.”

Out of respect for Kayo’s concern for her father and the grave implications carried by her words, the younger girl held in a scoff of approval for the sly teacher. Behind his humble braggart character was a man of outstanding virtue. The Ryuumonbuchi heiress always held great respect for him as a student, but now she saw him to be deserving of another kind of respect.

“Casting a safety net for his daughter before baring his fangs.”

Saki’s Remnant turned back to Belial. Though he seemed capable of merely observing and unable to answer, the girl spoke to him regardless.

“Fortune favors you again, o’ Monarch. Your foe is one fated to be overthrown by his own offspring, and here before you stands one such daughter of the self-proclaimed King of Heaven.” The Remnant returned to her seat. “This Saki imagines, however, that you would much rather crush him through sheer might alone.”

The girl shrugged. There was no use trying to reason out the Prince’s response. In time he would have his piece said.

“Knowing Sensei, it’s probably both. The latter will beget the former. Cause and effect.”

The Remnant brought herself back on topic, crossing her arms resolutely.

“It was wise of him to bring you to we Ryuumonbuchi. Of course, this Saki Ryuumonbuchi would have stretched my infernal arm out to aid you.”

The girl smiled.

“But it was wiser still of you to speak to me of this matter. What say you we foil Sensei’s plans and disrupt the chain of cause and effect?”

[Airen]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"While overwhelming your enemies through pure brute force is always the most satisfactory method, when it comes to entities of that sort, there is no shame in stacking the deck in your favor."

While his form cannot seem to move beyond the eyes, his voice still appears in your thoughts, even in the frozen time.

Although failing to appear up until now, it also seemed like he had had some trouble connecting to 'this' you rather than the 'main' one.

"So long as we are not dealing with the Great Devourer in it's purest form; the spiritual power of his children should be a more than potent sword and shield against him and his abilities. I won't complain about a poisoned dagger falling into my lap."

Unable to hear him, or at least pretending like she could not, the young woman nods in response to your inquiry.

"If you are willing to help me, that would make the situation a lot more manageable; and I would do whatever I can to repay you." Smiling lightly at you, even though her aura maintains a sincere sense of worry, the young woman finally stops eating in the frozen time, instead brushing some of her hair out of her eyes with a graceful hand, "I cannot go to the school; the Reporter and the God have gotten slightly more careless over time, but they still pay close attention to what happens on those grounds. My appearance would eventually draw attention if I hang around in that area for too long, so perhaps... You could keep an eye on him for me? I have no idea what he actually plans on doing, and it worries me."

Eyes close.

"In the event that you see something happening, I would find my way to you posthaste of course... Secrecy be damned."

[Airen]

Jacques Dussault & Minegishi Kazuya
'Battle Beat'

It was an interesting experience, being the summon rather than the summoner.

This Tokyo was much like the Tokyo he had known in his world, and he could not say that that was truly a good thing. The sky was a deep crimson, a blood-red horizon that was slowly filling with more and more cracks of black as the clock continues to count down to the World's End, to the moment in which God's Thunder would decimate the planet and the Conception would begin in earnest.

The Conception was not a ritual he had experienced in his life-time, in his world it had been the War of Bel, a different battle between humanity and the supernatural, but the atmosphere had been much like this, a desperate struggle for survival amidst a world that had fallen deep into the depths of chaos.

But the stakes were much higher in this war.

While he did not know how much of it was true, as he had acquired the information from the Sea shortly before leaving it, this world had become a refuge point for the humanity of many different worlds, as many as the Messiah could reach before he disappeared millennia ago; which was why the Soul Sea here was a particularly potent one. While he was certain humans existed in worlds beyond this one, those worlds were not ones that he could think of as particularly close; in essence, if this world was lost.

Then as far as he was concerned, humanity itself would fall into the darkness.

Even as a Guardian, thinking about saving all of Humanity was a task that was far too big to truly focus on. In the end he is merely a Heroic Spirit that had been roused by others to fight a battle, and he would take these sorts of things one battle at a time.

Sapporo.

They arrive easily enough; and the youth spins on his heel as Jacques heads for the tower.

The Harmonizer.

If it's similar to the one he knows, then it would certainly help the situation.

Although one on a massive scale?

Not a bad idea.

"Go on ahead, I got this."

Speaking feels odd. He has been dead for awhile, sleeping within the Sea of Souls, even so, despite the oddity it also feels natural in a way that he can't deny.

Much like riding a bike he supposed, you never forget how to do it.

This time, the enemy is not a demon. According to his information, it was a collection of human souls mimicking the shape of a demon, an after-effect of the world's creation, or perhaps a side-effect of Observation?

He could not say.

Even so, an enemy is an enemy. As someone who had battled with Gods on the front lines, who had traded blows with invincible beings of Legend, and even fought off the Morning Star, he is one of those rare humans that can stare death in the face without flinching or turning away.

And it seems that doing just that is the order of the day.

It fires upon him the moment it sees him.

To see a monster wielding guns was a new one, but the spiritual power behind the shot was no joke. Whether it recognized him as a different sort of threat, or saw the act of turning and facing it rather than running away as something worth taking seriously, the shot that it fires far surpasses the sonic boom that erupts from behind it.

He does not have his COMP.

It's a casual realization that he made long ago, but even so, he finds himself wishing for it absentmindedly even as his body moves on it's own, the burned in instincts of countless battles against impossible opponents triggering of their own accord.

However, he does not need his COMP.

While the use of direct magic was convenient, and being unable to heal himself with it was a notable detriment, in the end, he had been someone who had relied on more physical battles. Challenging Baldr up close and personal, destroying the King's Gate with his bare hands, he had really...

Turned this into a sort of habit.

Crossing the distance between them in the span of a heartbeat, figure blurring out of the path of the blast, a fist is fired towards what passes for the Reaper's solar plexus; coming from a single human, the sheer force behind the blow can only be thought of as absurd. A spiritual entity that was resistant to phenomena of all types, an amalgamation of spirits that represented one of many forms of death in the mind of humans, a single punch from a human, even one charged with spirit power, should not be enough to shake it to the core.

Even so, the body that rockets across the space is that of the massive reaper, a hole blown clear through the cluster of miasma that passed for it's figure.

It recovers seamlessly.

Body crackling with crimson lightning, the reaper moves out of the crumpled remains of a once abandoned building, the rattling of chains joined by a symphony of sick, distorted laughter.

Laughter that accompanies it's avoidance of his next strike. Moving beyond godspeed, striking in the way that was most natural to him, the reborn youth does not flinch when his fist meets open air, instead, turning his head to track the opponent that had passed him like a blur, he digs one foot into the ground, propelling himself into a spin as momentum is reversed and he throws himself once again at his opponent.

This was his specialty, staying right inside, right on his opponent. Staying at the range of his opponent's weapon was detrimental, and while it was faster than he had thought it would be, now that he had seen those movements he could adjust his own attacks accordingly-!

The next gunshot heralds a storm of lightning.

Not emerging from the barrel but rather from the sky, the guardian recognizes two things in a single instant:

One, this entity was capable of utilizing the magic of demons directly.

Two, he could not avoid this storm.

It was everywhere, attempting to dodge would only break his stance, and thus he throws up his arms instead, spirit power rising to form a natural protective aura as he vanishes into a storm of chirping birds.

The reaper wastes no time to fire into the storm of it's own creation.

While the world has become a symphony of electricity, it's ability to track living humans was unparalleled; and thus the storm of crimson lightning is pierced with chilling, horrific accuracy, one bullet meant to detonate his heart, the other his head.

In response, it's own form detonates instead, and it takes it a moment to understand why:

It's simple.

The human had knocked both shots back at it.

Body crackling with electricity, burns covering his forms, mainly the arms that had covered his vitals and ultimately reflected the shots back to their caster.

The spiritual power behind that electricity had been intense, but he grits his teeth and shakes it off, the reaper that he had downed with it's own attacks regenerating just as quickly as it had been before, and-

"Okay... Not bad."

He admits it packs a punch.

In response it just screams at him, hundreds of pinpricks of light appearing all around it as arrows, or at least things that resemble arrows, manifest as if from nothing, points all aimed at him.

Ah.

Myriad Arrows was it?

Lovely.

Shifting his stance, hands rising into a boxing pose, he prepares to charge in spite of the mounting offense, mind already processing the best combination of evasion and tanking that will get him through the storm.

And watching it all, the Harmonizer Field slowly booting up behind him even as he descends to the battlefield, Jacques Dussault...

Has become but a distant thought in the Reaper's mind as it focuses on a particularly durable prey.

It's mistake.

[Spinach]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

“Remuneration. A rendezvous under the clock’s frozen hand, in this place where angel’s tears can be nothing else but frozen, has no need for such talk.” So spoke the red Saki, her searing teacup having found its way back to her hand. “However, I am of like mind to Belial. Pride does not bind me from taking all advantages that fate might offer to me.”

A burning liquid, almost like lava shifted within the cup as the Remnant took a sip.

“Of course this Saki Ryuumonbuchi, as well as her many, many eyes will keep an eye on Sensei.”

The girl stole a glance at the other Remnants, as well as her original self, and finally Phenex. If need be she could call in even more ‘eyes,’ but these were plenty. Phenex alone constituted ‘plenty,’ the butler-maid could keep tabs on a single human he had ample information on no matter what forces might conspire against him.

Not counting her mother’s own machinations. The Remnant’s eyes lingered over the form of her matriarch, wondering if something as trite as frozen time could possibly allow Ryuumonbuchi Kazuno’s daughter to escape from her eyes.

“The necessary arrangements will be made. Do not feel honor-bound to repay this, Fujimoto-san, Sensei’s wellbeing is a desire of my own.”

Eyes still locked onto her mother’s figure, though not blatantly so, the girl sat down her teacup. Then, with a snicker, the Remnant turned back to the older girl with a coy tilt of the head.

“Though, your cooperation in the coming days would be very much appreciated. I'm sure you understand; you aren't entirely involved, Fujimoto-san.”

[Airen]

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"I am aware of my... Potential role."

She existed as a sort of trump card against a certain God, she was aware of that, even if her father had never actually referred to her in such a way.

"But at the same time, I'm a trump that can only be effective once."

After that, the moment her existence is known, if she does not defeat her divine parent, she will likely be erased completely and never allowed to exist again, in that sense:

She was inherently careful about her actions.

Because she was the only guaranteed weapon that existed against it.

But like Belial said, in the case of it being the "Purest Form" of the Great Devourer... Well, no reason to think about the worst case scenario quite yet.

"But this time feels special... So I will help however I can, throw caution to the wind if I must."

So she agrees to help.

Feeling no particularly strong feelings towards either her true father or her true mother, she had been raised completely beyond their influence.

"Now, let's see, I should restart the clock... Look natural."

Purposefully getting back into the pose she had made when she had done it, hoping to fling off as much suspicion as possible, you hurriedly move to do the same; but as the world flows back into motion, and consequently erupts with sound once more:

"..."

Phenex, one hand resting lightly on the back of your mother's chair, the only servant that was completely unaffected by the woman's personality, and the mother in question...

Are both looking your way.

---

Remnant Saki #1 (Redgrave)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

Someone had moved the position of your hand.

Having been challenged to one of the oldest and simplest competitions between humans, it had taken only the thoughts of an instant to realize that rock was clearly the superior choice.

It was the default option, thus, there was no way a man who didn't believe in his own luck would trust himself to paper.

No.

He was a scissors man.

The logic is perhaps a bit faulty, but even so, you had trusted your instincts, and:

Paper.

Somehow you had thrown out paper, in response to the man's rock. It somehow doesn't feel as wrong as you should, and suspicions of the actions of certain other entities come to mind, especially because it feels like a gap of knowledge had appeared within you, but...

What makes it stranger.

Is that Redgrave starts chuckling when he sees it.

"Does my luck warp reality now? Man."

Regardless of whether you come to understand or not by leeching off the others...

"Well, story of my life, I guess. Rolled the dice and lost."

He jerks one thumb towards himself.

"Cambion. The old man was a Demon, good intentioned; still a demon. Albeit, not one that shows up in this world's history anywhere..."

---



Remnant Saki #3 (Belial)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

His gaze had turned away from you and back again in a single instant. While your first instinct is to get slightly annoyed that he didn't seem to be paying complete attention to you, the reality is that he had actually heard it all, and indeed, could individually process all of the conversations going on around him at the same time.

"That viewpoint has it's merits."

He is being surprisingly cooperative in conversation today.

"Things that burn out eventually and disappear are certainly the things most worth observing, but at the same time caution is required. Attaching yourself so completely to things that may, no, will eventually fail you is dangerous for both sides for a number of reasons."

Arms cross.

"However, do not misunderstand me. I am not saying I have never known friendship with a human. however, those humans that fell in line with me... Are the ones who also suffered fates far beyond the usual because of it."

While the way he says it coupled with his past attitude would normally imply he had killed these hypothetical humans himself...

Somehow the feeling you get...

Is that that is not the case.

---

Saki of the Tyrant-King's Blaze-Murdering Black-Dragon-Wave (Saki Prime)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"Ah no, it's the bad boy phase."

Horrifically, his response to being pointed out as misunderstanding the situation, simply results in him purposefully misunderstanding the situation even further-!

"Denial? Is this that tsundere thing you kids are always going on about?"

Okay.

First off, there was no way he didn't know what a tsundere was; this was a man who kept manga in the drawers of his homeroom desk and-

"Of course, demons that can shift their form often take forms appealing to humans so there's no real shame in it. But Demon from the Depths of Hell may be a bit too excessive on the bad boy scale."

-Sometimes this guy just couldn't help but be annoying...

[Airen]

Jonathan R. Black
District Remains ~ Primordial Sea

"...Yeah, I understand."

Akane's smile is sincere, but ultimately it is also short-lived as everyone's attention is drawn towards the weather reporter.

The only hope you have lies in Unity with those around you.

While the power you hold as Amatsu's chosen is immense, strong enough that in a normal war of Conception, you could easily be considered the strongest of the Summoners present in terms of brute force, the reality that your instincts declare completely denies this logic.

The woman in front of you is a monster.

While your own spirit power is so immense as to be infinite, hers is so vast that it simply cannot be measured in a quantifiable way anymore. The reason for this is not difficult to discern, especially now that you've linked everyone together on a mental level and the thoughts of the others float across the surface of your own ponderings; admitting to slaying and feeding the Gods to Chronos, raising his power over countless repetitions in order to make him powerful enough to oppose the Axiom, no...

Not just the Axiom.

While it is only a theory Megumi has formed after hearing the woman's words, it seems that the intent had been to suppress the cycle of hatred by force rather than by affinity, which is how Amatsu was able to do it, as that was his 'ability' as the God of Negative Feelings.

In essence, while you were being powered by humanity's darkness, she had been preparing herself over all this time to defeat that same darkness and keep it in check, no...

All of humanity, kept in line with brute force.

"The timer is a countdown to Death-!"

The world has slowed to a crawl, but you still hear the voices of your impromptu comrades as everyone prepares to resist the tyrant's grip. Data flows in from multiple points of view; Izanami confirms the existence of multiple subdued essences within the woman, Megumi confirms her status as an Eclipse Diver in addition to that, while the Rider and Akane strike as one, both instinctively understanding that this person needs to be wiped out sooner rather than later, the mix of conceptual impurity and corrosive miasma becoming a toxic mud that would eat straight through anything living within this world.

The impurities further amplified by Megumi instinctively modifying it's structure with her ESP, it becomes a beam of the most corrosive substance in the universe, a mud that brings death even to things from beyond this earth, that spreads to the Leviathan as it takes it within itself, taking on the shape of a moving calamity, a divine disaster that would have taken ages to mold into this sort of force, done in less than an instant thanks to the power and time granted by a newfound unity.

Even the Kyuubi would have been given pause when faced with such a mass, an intricate magic that had been forged to be as strong as it could be by not just humans, but demons as well, even so:

"...Is this all?"

Raising a single hand to oppose the newfound Black Leviathan, a feeling of dim shock spreads through the group as a mass that could have certainly tore through the entire city without stopping or slowing down, comes to a complete and total stop when it tries to run through the woman and is met with an immovable wall.

She's holding it back with only a single hand.

Or rather, the sheer force of her soul. Having mastered the art of analyzing enemy magics a long time ago, the woman recognizes that being touched by that mud would kill even her and instead touches it with her body coated in spiritual force.

In terms of size, it's like pitting a human against a kaiju, except in this case-!

Ground exploding around her, the woman grimaces as she is forced to put more effort into the strength of her arms; it is unexpectedly heavy and in that sense she is impressed, but seeing her emotions cross her face in what seems like slow motion due to the forced increase of your vision's frame-rate, you also never see that expression become one of fear.

While it's taking her a moment to struggle with it, by no means is it pushing her back either.

Yes.

In fact, Izanami had realized that this outcome was the most likely the moment the momentum of the spiritual mass had dropped to a complete and utter zero. Simply calling up more spiritual power from within, the struggle that had seemed to take so long in the slowed down time comes to an end as the arm stopping the mass breaks completely through it.

Splitting the Leviathan in half as a result.

It's the equivalent of scattering your Sea of Souls with brute force strength; black mud shooting off to cover the city as the souls attempt to re-converge with each other. It's a solid blow, the one that sends everyone scattering; but she fails to smile even as she regains visual sight of her targets.

In that same moment, the moment in which she had won that struggle between powers.

The Goddess of Death attacks from her blind spot; choosing not to attack with the others, recognizing that an enemy is most vulnerable after attaining a sort of victory, Izanami has already come to the conclusion that this particular group did not have enough power to directly overpower Chiyoko in any sense of the word.

Instead, once more, she relies on manipulating the soul of her opponent.

If she can sever the woman's bond with Chronos, than the majority of her power as a Chosen should fade away to nothing; it is an attack that is only possible because of the others distraction, made at Godspeed and triggered to strike in the moment in which the woman won her struggle with that other power. Taking her reflexes so far into account, the soul reaping attempt should logically land, however-!

Even though her face does twist slightly in shock.

It is for less than an instant.

A flicker runs through the world, through reality, and that expression changes to an infinite resolve as time itself manifests as her ally. To you it is but a flicker in her expressions, a sign that something is not quite the same, but to her it is an eternity in which to plan; catching the Goddess's wrist, pulling her towards her with divine strength, the fist that smashes into the Goddess's stomach, rocketing her into air only for a spinning kick, charged with an absurd amount of spiritual force to send her crashing through buildings thousands of yards away, shows a casual confidence and strength that cannot be denied by anyone.

"I won't be stopped by a bunch of kids and upstart demons, thinking that they know what the right way to live is. Freedom has only ever damned us to this, it had it's run, it's over."

She doesn't push the assault herself, not yet:

"Since you're so attracted to the idea of the strong... Perhaps I'll show you what it's like to be weak. To have a future that you can't avoid no matter what... Because that is the world you live in now. I can't be beaten, not by you, or anyone else within this world."

[Katie]

Mikagura Mika
Amatsu's Throne, Tokyo

If there is something to accurate to say, it is that despite the fact Yamuna worded it as a suggestion, it really isn’t. Her reasoning is all too clear to me—there would never be a situation where I did not understand—but most importantly, I pledged myself to her and her will. With her reunited, only one of the promises I’ve made has been completed. And as someone who finds it very difficult to lie over important matters…

I distinctly remember myself saying that we could stop the Kyuubi.

She has enough faith in humanity that they can deal with a monster born of their own sin. Faith and trust are merely the same thing, you see. And if she is willing to place that much trust in humanity, then it is only reasonable to place my trust and faith in the goddess made to fight for us. I must go—to help Nami, to save humanity. Promises must be kept, and if my body fails now Amatsu-Mikaboshi will destroy me in an instant. Pragmatic and idealistic reasons blend themselves together in harmonious union, guiding my course of action.

I swap Beacon to gun form—there are no gods to slay where I am going, hopefully. I tell Genbu that we’re going, because of course we are—if we are to make the most of what Zerah has given us, any decision must be made in immediacy. And as summoner to demon, what I say, goes.

Of course, I still have one thing to say, as a knight to my lord.

“I believe in you.”

And with that, Genbu and I make our leave.

[Airen]

Interlude
ESPers and Exorcists of Tokyo
"The Fall"

To the citizens of this city, hell was something that had opened up once before eight years in the past.

Crimson skies and the screams of both monsters and humans alike, the scent of fire, of ash and despair, are all once again present in a world that had finally begun to heal from the last of that distant pain.

The hole in hell had opened again tonight.

While now was the appointed time, while the world should not have reached its death throes until the beginning of the next year, there is not a soul in the world that can truly believe that things within this city are not just coming to a burning, crashing end in an apocalypse that had just happened to miss them the first time and had finally come back to finish the job.

There won't be a night beyond this one.

Black streaks forming in the sky, the signs of a world that was finally collapsing beneath the weight of it's own sins, the shadow-like corpses that have begun to swarm the streets, bearing the will to "kill humans" has manifested to finally brings things to the end they desire. While the phenomena is not limited to Tokyo, it is by far strongest here, in the city that had already once been scarred by that crimson blackness; the many streets that have filled up with wraiths are no longer filled with life.

For whatever life remains, has already gathered together in one place to resist the dark, a lance made of human resistance, those survivors from eight years ago mixing with those who survived now, as ESPers and Exorcists led the path through the darkness.

"...Don't you think that there are a bit too many of them?"

While the group of civilians is massive, easily filling the length of several dozen streets, the wraiths and monsters that are trying to get at them through the perimeter maintained by humans bearing spiritual strength, is one that seems to embody a true infinity. While every ESPer present as a guardian is easily worth more than hundreds of wraiths, the sheer assault by numbers, one that has kept up for over an hour now, is one that has allowed one or two of the weaker monsters to pierce through the limited ranks of ESPers and sane exorcists.

"It's the apocalypse, what do you expect?"

"You're taking this in stride now, Jack."

"Yeah well, apparently this shit is normal for you guys right?"

"No... Can't really say that."

Even so, the atmosphere is not one that has completely broken down into despair.

While the humans were helpless for some time when this occurred, having to rely on one or two humans in the center crowd that could destroy what had seemed to them an invisible opponent, a light buzzing sound and piercing feeling, the feeling of a certain bounded field kicking on due to the actions of a handful of ESPers, has not only made the shadow-like wraiths visible to the humans, but damageable by them as well, because of that, the morale of the humans hasn't completely fallen to pieces, and an injury/fatality rate that could have easily been as high as 50%, had instead lowered itself to a far less stressful 10%.

While that loss of life is still despair inducing, to the citizens of Aoyama, who had seen a manifest calamity that was far worse than this, they are able to press on through the sheer strength of their collective will.

Because of that, the ESPers and Exorcists can focus on the bigger youkai, as the group marches towards Tokyo Bay.

"We'll take this street, it should be the clearest-!"

Leading the path from the front alongside Koizumi Sora and Nimura Kensuke, the one that has chosen the group's path up till now is Ayanami Nami; because it is possible for vengeful spirits to simply appear amidst the crowd due to the leylines spreading out from the Soul Sea, the path that they take is important in mitigating the battles they have to fight.

Their destination, is the airship that had appeared over the skies of Tokyo Bay. With her cell phone being directly linked to by Namasaki Kenji, it as confirmed that the airship was here for evacuation purposes.

It had been forced to engage a massive demon the moment it had entered the Tokyo airspace, so it hadn't been able to come pick them up directly, but stressed for time, it wasn't like they could avoid going towards that battle either.

After all, there was a growing power in the sky.

Not just the sky, but at key points in the city as well, those who were sensitive to it could sense immense amounts of spiritual power flaring up as other battles to decide fate are fought away from the eyes of the populace.

While unaware of the significance, they still know that they should be avoided, thus, in order to save the highest amount of people possible, the girl relies on her ESP to light the path towards the future.

Because they can't stop now.

While the defensive line is holding for the most part, the constant assaults by A-Rank apparitions were taking their toll on humanity's fighters. Even the ESPers are starting to suffer serious damage, and while a rotation of fighters in and out has enabled the wounded to recover somewhat before heading back to the mobile perimeter; having picked up wounded individuals along the way, the pace of the group as a whole has slowed, and she cannot afford to hesitate on making a decision for very long, or they might not make it to Tokyo Bay at all.

"Hah... Hah..."

"Cross, fall back-!"

"No dammit! I... I'm fine-!"

The sheer fact that Liane -wounded to the point where any other ESPer would have long ago succumbed to unconsciousness- was up near the front lines rather than the center mass of the group with the other wounded, was a testament to two things:

One, things were bad enough that people thought it was necessary.

Two, she was too damn stubborn to listen to people telling her she had fought enough already.

"Liane senpai-!"

A statement whose truth was punctuated when the woman passes out on her feet, Tsuchimiya Kagura catching her before she can hit the ground; amongst the ESPers her wounds were the worst, having taken a divine class phenomena right at the start of the night, it seemed that only her legendary ability to endure damage and keep on going had kept her alive, but judging by the way her body was starting to burn up even when she wasn't going anything...

They weren't sure how much longer that was going to be the case.

Especially with the aggressive way she was going about all of this, her actions filled with a desperate air.

"Kagura, take her back to the healing ESPers, see if they can do anything for her now that she's passed out again and isn't actively trying to fight them off."

In spite of the scenario, there is still some warmth in Sora's voice.

It had been many years since they had fought together, but that person hadn't changed in the slightest.

Claiming not to be a hero, but probably the clearest example of someone that was, the ghost of a strained smile crosses her face as the other woman is finally forced to rest, but-

In that same instant, the crimson sky is blocked out by a writhing black mass, one that begins to plunge the moment it's existence becomes known to those that lay below.

Everyone recognizes it for what it is immediately; and while the feeling of fear instinctually reaches their hearts, not a single one of them scream aloud in horror, at least not in that first moment of recognition.

Because for those who had witnessed the tragedy eight years ago, this was a meeting that they had known was always destined to reoccur; even if not consciously, to those that saw it, it was a sight that burned itself into the depths of the conscious and subconscious.

A reminder, that one day, without fail.

This is a being that must be dealt with, one way or another.

If they do not deal with it, they will not be able to pass.

The miracle from eight years ago is no longer an option, the darkness will not just be sealed away.

Orders no longer matter.

Because the descent is slow enough that action can be taken before it arrives, those that are standing here now are already sorting themselves into two groups not by conscious thought, but by the strength of their willpower.

Simply put, there are some that can bring themselves to face what they recognize as the human world's end, and others that are unable to match that will, and thus pull back to protect the civilians from the other threats.

It's losing progress, to reverse their momentum and fall back from the landing zone of the Kyuubi, but everyone knows, it does not need to be said...

For normal humans to stand in it's presence, is the same thing as for them to die.

---

Mikagura Mika
Burning Tokyo

"Thank you. Don't worry, I'll definitely win."

That had been Yamuna's answer.

The last thing she had said as her back had disappeared beneath the blaze of a battlefield that you were no longer apart of.


---


"There's already so much damage..."

It has only been a few hours, and already Tokyo is in ruins. The once abundant buildings have all fallen to pieces, battered by the hands of countless restless spirits, and while the youkai in question are no longer around, the sound of deep roars in the instance serves only as testament that a worse monster continues to remain within the confines of the world.

You haven't yet reached the battlefield, and yet you can feel it's presence.

For all those that survived eight years ago, it is a presence that can't be mistaken for anything else. Like the blade of a reaper resting on the back of your neck; to approach the Kyuubi is to approach death, that is a feeling unique to humanity, who recognize it as their own darkness made manifest, their own negativity finally coming for not just their head, but the heads of others as well.

When the roads become paved with youkai of all types, you take to whatever rooftops remain.

The living are close, and thus the monster is close too.

You do not need the record to tell you that.

Climbing up the ladder of a particularly durable apartment building, you finally see it when you reach a rooftop coated in flames. While the humans are also nearby, the living that remained in this city being shielded by teams of exorcists and ESPers, those teams, the humans themselves, are far from the fight.

Even so, it's not possible for them to miss.

Easily dwarfing the city, a true form of the false illusion Yagami had summoned so long ago, the one thing that the much smaller fighters have in their favor is that the accuracy of the monster leaves much to be desired; fighting in it's shadow, minuscule in comparison to the creature they are fighting, those that have decided to face the impossible to defeat opponent head on have to go all out in order to even damage it.

"Hah-!"

While her blade should not be able to reach it, the form of Sora, darting at mach speeds below the monster's form in order to avoid the strikes of it's building sized limbs, sends lines of sheer azure force arcing through the air with each and everyone of her swings on the beast, cutting the air, and seemingly cutting through it's skin too, long gouges appearing on the surface of the black even as it screeches, trying to smash her in response, only to miss by inches as the woman moves out of the way at godspeed, body reacting all on it's own to the hell that it has found itself apart of, drawing the monster's attention away from a downed Liane, who seems to be trying and failing to struggle to her feet.

On the other hand, Nami is scaling it's body without causing too much fuss; clinging to something that would vaporize any normal human without flinching or grimacing at all from the pain of touching the thing directly; while you can feel that her target is the head, her purpose for getting there is unknown, and-

Finally flying back and forth on the back of both a massive crow and a white dragon respectively, the Herald of the Yatagarasu, and another girl, Tsuchimiya Kagura, are the only two whose attacks seem to have enough momentum to actually shake the body of the creature rather than cut it as Sora was doing.

They were relentless, all of them attacking ceaselessly, fighting a monster that cannot be felled in this way but struggling against the fate it guaranteed regardless and...

Now that you were here... And seeing the bodies of others that had tried to fight and had fallen already...

It was time for you to move too.

[Vritra]

Makoto Fujioka
Nakamura Residence
Night

Triumphancy victorious! Nyahahahaha yaaaaaaaaaaay slumber party is miiiiiiiine ~!

Lying out on the floor I survey the prize my efforts won, Kimichi! Kyoto! Hitomimi and Akido! Ane-san! Usami! Fuzzy fow fow kaboooom! Hehehe even just laying here I can feel it, the noise, the air, the energy, none of it might be over the top or exploding yet the warmth is unquestionable. The slow steady pulse like sitting next to someone wrapped in a blanket in front of the fire on a winter day. A degree of separation mixed with unbreakable connection ahaha so, so warm Kimichi, Kyoto, Ane-san, Usamiiiii nyaaaa I want moo…

Hwa?

…

Descending into silence as I examine a crucial aspect that has revealed itself to my ace detective senses!

Mmmmmmmmm… Kimichi… Kyoto and Sensei… Hitomimi and Akido… Ane-san and Megane… Usami…

Oooooooooh… I can’t choose everyone... Nooo faaaaaaaaaaaair! Biting back tears as I try to shake off the crushing sense of frustration I flip through all my options again and again at supersonic speed before settling on the one that I just can’t leave.

So in the end I can't figure out how to start without this one huh...

Sneak, sneak, sneaky, sneak ~ stealthily making my way out doors until I reach Usami’s blind spot, hwawawawa FANCY SUPERMOVE SNEAK ATTACK HUG! Focusing on recreating the untraceable zoom zoom step I wrap my arms around her and rest my chin on her shoulder.

“Hey, hey Usami are you still trying to be silly and be cold all by yourself even when we went out of our way to grab you?”

Operation drag Usami next to the fire with everyone goooooooooooo!

[Airen]

Makoto Fujioka
Nakamura Residence
Night

"I'm not a party kind of person."

While she normally puts up at least a token resistance when you do this sort of thing, the young woman that had figured you would try to do this at some point or another had just accepted it with a sigh of light annoyance.

"Besides, I attacked a good chunk of the people in there with the full intention of murdering them," saying this casually, a bewildered smile crossing her face at the thought, the girl can't help but chuckle, "You all may be a bunch of weirdos that are able to forget that because I've been good, but that doesn't change how awkward it is for me, see?"

For a prisoner, she was simply being treated far too well; and she knew that, and the fact that there didn't seem to be any ulterior motive to it all was so confusing that she was having trouble making sense of it.

She was a dangerous person, very dangerous, even so they had never once tortured her or tried to read her mind, they let her wander around freely if she had an escort, and now they had even let her off of that particular 'leash' for good behavior.

It was weird.

Weirder still, was the vague warm feeling she got from that sort of insane acknowledgement and trust.

"Besides... What's wrong with just watching the moon?"

Eyes close.

"Pretty soon we won't be around to look at it anymore, might as well burn it into my mind now."

[Vritra]

Makoto Fujioka
Nakamura Residence
Night

“Ahahaha Usami silly, silly on several things! Oooh maybe Usami just likes punishment? As for not being able to see it again if want to do that then you just need to remember what you want and put everything into hugging it, things will work out!”

Laughing at Usami’s awkwardness I simply stretch her cheeks and remind her of how proper things are before I break into a grin and grasp her side and prepare.

“Ohoho since Usami wants punishment then take this! Tormenting Tickle …something Else, Tstrike!”

If she can’t stand it then I’ll just have fun and do this so she can feel better before dragging her back in so we can go hug Ane-san and Megane.

[Snax]

Jonathan R. Black
District Remains ~ Primordial Sea


"Hmph, so what? I have never denied the potential of humanity. Even a select number of the weak are capable of becoming strong. I myself have already seen a certain man turn from being nothing, into becoming a full fledged Eclipse Diver, and beat the crap out of me. I have acknowledged, and I have grown. That is why I will submerge this world in a Trial, one to weed out the truly weak and those with potential. Those that can become strong will learn, grow, and prosper under the Strong. They will overcome them, and create a new level of Strong. This will continue, and forever build progress. The useless weak will be used as fodder and consumed, turned into fertilizer for those select elite to run the world. That is the way things should be - the law of the jungle, as one might say!"

Jonathan snarled, unfazed by the display of strength the woman put up. Of course. Even with Unity, it wasn't going to be that easy - the woman before him had stockpiled ages, eons of spiritual power, and also had a contract with the most powerful God he knew of yet, Chronos, dominion over all time.

Even slowing their own personal time wasn't going to be enough.

But this was to his calculations.

"I acknowledge I am not the strongest yet. I had always considered myself a mere Coordinator, one to bring about the world as it should be - however, if I need to be the Strongest, if I need to devour the very Gods and absorb their powers as my own to usher in my world, so be it - I will do so!"

The black mud swirls, twirls, concentrates. The scattered Sea of Souls seeks out any lingering souls in the nearby vicinity, latching on to them, breaking down their force and urging them to join the flow. The weak were to be consumed for the Strong to prevail - and at this certain moment -

"White!!"

The White Rider's horse canters forth, and the Rider strikes - as the corrosive black mud that was spread out to all corners of the area forms intricate circles and forms, his arrow pierces certain points of it, energizing the circle - a gateway of sorts.

Black water rages and rises into the air, creating a dome that swallows all, and transports everything within it - Izanami, Chiyoko, Akane, Megumi - everyone.

The phenomenal clash of Divine Power at this very world, mixed alongside the massive energy of hundreds of souls being consumed, throws open the road from which Jonathan once came - a copy of Amatsu's ability, the one that had sent him to this very location. Normally, he wouldn't be capable of such a feat. However, with Amatsu's backup, the Rider's ability, his brilliant brain, and the combined force of their Unity - there was no reason why he couldn't reiterate that miracle.

"Open the path - the path, to the Sea of All Souls!! There, the fate of humanity will be settled - and the true ending to this world be set!!"

-----

Jonathan R. Black
The Sea of Souls - The Reckoning -


Jonathan faces down the Weather Woman. The Rider, Megumi, Izanmi and Akane watch from above as Jonathan slowly descends, his form literally dipping into the Sea of Souls.

On the other side, Chiyoko does the same - for that is how Jonathan had transported them all, by his power as Amatsu's Chosen.

"You have said before - what I do is insignificant. You have said before - you won't be stopped by some kids and upstart demons. You have said before - Freedom has only ever damned us."

Jonathan spreads his arms, gesturing towards the Sea.

"Well then, let us not limit ourselves to our own Seas, our own Gods, our own visions. The Will of Humanity will follow the road they wish. If this is to be their Final Act of Freedom, let them choose for themselves."

His left hand outstretches.

"On my side, Freedom and Progress."

His right hand outstretches.

"On your side, Rule and Stagnancy."

The Sea surges, as the Souls take their sides.

The Final Act, the fate of the race, would be decided by the very will of all humanity.

[Spinach]

Remnant Saki #1 (Redgrave)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

“Not in this world’s history, you say?” The Remnant stared at her still outstretched hand, formed in the shape of paper. Without a doubt, she threw rock. She had made the decision to throw rock. Redgrave seemed like the type suited to ‘pairs,’ so it seemed natural that he’d throw scissors, a pair of blades connected at a pivot, yet…

Not only that, but there was a feeling of information missing from her.

Each Remnant is a perfect reflection of the real Saki. Their form and spiritual signature is perfectly identical to the original of flesh and blood. This perfect mimicry means that the Revenant Flame exists in two places at once, and in a single instant can choose her ‘true’ location. Further still, the Remnants were linked in mind. What one saw, the others and original saw. What one heard, the others and original heard.

Yet for some reason.

The Remnant beside Redgrave took a subtle glance down the table, toward the Remnant seated with Fujimoto Kayo.

There was a ‘gap’ in the information coming from that Remnant.

“Then you come from another world in the Amala Universe, Mister Redgrave?”

The Remnant reached out and took hold of the plate holding her dessert, smiling.

The information gap could be pursued at another time.

Remnant Saki #3 (Belial)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

“You say to perish is to fail?” Answering without a moment of hesitation, even in spite of the strange sensation she shared with both her true self and another Remnant, the crimson clone stayed focused exclusively on the Prince of Hell.

The Remnant in question could simply pass whatever knowledge it was withholding at another time, and it would inevitably reach them all once she extinguished her fiery selves.

“We mortals are transient existences. Death is one of many stages of the human system. We are born with the knowledge that we will end. Those that seek eternity among us are heretics; defects. Fighting against what they are in an endless struggle to throw away their beauty.”

The Remnant stopped, taking her chin in her hand as she began to think more of Belial’s stance.

“Still, to perish in a critical moment, without accomplishing one’s duty… that can be called failure.”

She wasn’t stubborn enough to say he was entirely wrong. A total aversion to attachment for humans due to their mortality was something she fundamentally disagreed with, but even she would not suggest blindly allowing them into the heart. Not without a great deal of caution and readiness.

Searing eyes turned downward, to the Demon seated with arms crossed.

“Tell me of those humans you once befriended, Belial.” The flaming girl spoke as serious as ever. “Of those fates they suffered, and then tell me.”

She began to smile.

“Will I suffer a similar fate in the end?”

Saki of the Tyrant-King's Blaze-Murdering Black-Dragon-Wave (Saki Prime)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

The girl smiled. There was no warmth or patience in that smile. For one who was characterized by heat, flame, passion, it was a spine-shiveringly cold smile. One that almost held outright killing intent.

Calmly, she reached for the tokkuri and with great finesse poured a small drink for her teacher.

It was normal behavior for a host such as she. Treating her guest with a smile on her face, except…

The air itself was distorting around the girl’s hands, as well as the cup. A heat haze began to suck moisture out of the space directly between the two, and the surface of the tokkuri almost seemed to be shining red from heat.

The sake she had poured for the man as well looked on the verge of boiling, and the girl insistently pushed it to him, speaking in a voice as sweet as honey but as cold as the abyss.

“Sensei, aren’t you misunderstanding a little too much? Perhaps a drink will calm you down.”

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

Time resumed. The sensation of the clock being put back into motion was surprisingly… nonexistent. The Remnant felt no different. The world around it felt much the same as well, save for it once more being animated and lively as it was meant to be.

Perhaps most interesting was that the conversation in the world of frozen time had not perfectly reflected onto her other selves. The others even sensed the gap in knowledge. If she wished, she could pass the information on right this moment, but she immediately made the decision to wait.

More concerning were the stares from across the table.

Of course.

The Remnant almost sighed. At this point she couldn’t find herself surprised to find her mother surpassing common sense.

Peering into frozen time? Well, it’s only natural. If you have to do it, you do it.

Or so she would say.

“Fujimoto-san,” the Remnant turned back to her guest, ignoring the stares for now. It wasn’t a problem for either to have overheard, after all. “How are you enjoying dinner? There are many guests tonight.”

The girl took a modest glance at the other diners, emphasizing her point.

“I hope the extra company isn’t bothering you.”

[Airen]

Makoto Fujioka
Nakamura Residence
Night

"That's optimistic of you."

This time she wrestles with you a bit.

Grabbing your wrists when your touchy-feely attitude starts to annoy her a bit, for the first time in the night the tables are turned as she puts you in a friendly headlock out of what seemed to be instinct, a strange look crossing her face after she does it, as if she hadn't quite meant to do it, and instead had simply acted out a series of motions from what must have been a different lifetime.

"The world isn't so nice as to just give you the things you want, just because you want them badly enough."

Even so, her little speech does not falter when her expressions do.

"None of you seem to remember it clearly, but this world doesn't have a future. The Power of Friendship or whatever doesn't always work, didn't work last time, don't see why it would work this time."

She almost sounds sad about it, in spite of the cynicism.

Of course-

"Alright, Dinner in five! Everyone to the table now. Snatch food early and I'm sealing the arm that does it."

Ah.

Dinner at the Nakamura House.

The only affair more stressful than an outright battle, where everything is a race to the best parts of the meal, and every reach out for seconds and thirds could be a precursor to an actual fight with someone on the other side of the table.

Yes...

There were certainly downsides to the shared love of food this household seemed to hold, and while Usami sort of scoffs at the idea, your head still caught beneath your arms...

The sound of a rumbling stomach brings both parties to a stop.

[Mooncake]

Jacques Dussault & Minegishi Kazuya
'Battle Beat'

The light burns.

Thousands of sparks appear in the air, moving so fast that they seem to almost slow down as whatever that thing is down there tries its very best to eliminate the hired help.

Thankfully, in doing that, it's not paying attention to me anymore, which is exactly what I wanted to happen. The Harmonizer is buzzing, starting to deploy as I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

In.

Out.

Focus.



The world blurs into shades of grey as I sink into the shadows, and then moves away, like I'm miles below the surface of the sea.

Thinking about it, it feels almost like the place where I met Hel, though the pervasive feeling of emptiness isn't here. Time is passing quickly as shadows move up there, but down here it feels timeless, and I take a precious second to collect my thoughts.

Whatever that thing is, I don't know if we can beat it.

Whatever it is, I know we'll have to defeat it if the plan is going to succeed.

I know that I have to.

No more running away, yeah?

I dive up until the light of the surface is close to the touch. It's like swimming, but it's also... it's like there's a membrane between me and the world, eggshell-thin, that I can just reach out and puncture-

And I see the kid coming through the storm of arrows, weaving and ducking and taking the shots when he has to, way braver then I was at his age.

And I reach through.

The ground around the reaper ruptures as massive spikes of shadow burst forth, aiming for the abomination's arms and legs, and I'm there amidst it all, diving out into another pool of shadow to recoup, re-gather, get ready for another pass at it.

All right, then, I say, and only myself and Hel can hear it.

Let's kick some ass.

[Airen]

Remnant Saki #1 (Redgrave)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"Can't say for sure, but that could be how it is."

His personality was surprisingly childish at times, judging by the small pout that flickers across his face as the second plate of ice-cream, shaped like a volcano and erupting not with chocolate but rather strawberries, disappears from his foreseeable future.

"It's going to sound like I was bragging, but I had to chase a target into hell to make sure they didn't get back out. Dealt with that, but the portal I used wound up closing, had nowhere to go but deeper, and a bit of wandering around to find an exit later and bam, here I am."

Reach out for his own plate, the implications behind the story don't seem to bother him all that much.

"That was all a few years ago; haven't managed to find my way back just yet, but taking this sort of inter-world-trip every once in awhile helps make life interesting, wouldn't you say?"

---

Remnant Saki #3 (Belial)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

Sensing a rare opportunity for some insight into your demon's psyche, the question you ask is one that the demonic tyrant would normally just ignore, remaining silent, or perhaps diverting his attention towards making someone else's life miserable, but...

"A human beat me once, completely and utterly."

Arms still crossed, that face remains stoic in spite of that admittance.

"We were competitors in a war for power, one not unlike the Conception, but on a much smaller scale... Just a single world. The power that human had was fascinating, his belief in his own self was absolute, and facing that without a clear purpose of my own, facing it just for my own amusement really... I shouldn't have been surprised that I was crushed so completely."

Eyes crossing with Phenex, whose stare had shifted from one of the remnants to Belial, the other demon seems to be paying attention to the story as well, although Belial doesn't actually seem to care that much about it.

"He was interesting; he even declined to banish me, so I decided to observe his journey. He gathered demons, gods and angels alike with a human greed, but treated them like companions rather than tools or opponents... A rare breed amongst summoners, but foolish, to trust a demon completely is folly."

Demon-kind have no real love for humanity as a whole, however, according to Nakahara-Sensei, they were the type that got attached to "individuals."

Personal loyalty over general loyalty.

They might gleefully watch most of humanity burn, but leap straight into the fire to save the one they personally had an interest in...

Aware perhaps, that he was being a bit too open now, the demon grimaces and shortens the story further:

"He conquered all of the opponents in his way, won the war that had come the way of his world, and then, after we had already parted ways, he died a fool's death joining me on my crusade against the heavens. Death for me is meaningless, I will come back eventually even if it takes millennia, even so, the fool fought one of my battles for me because he believed we were friends. Illogical, because that that was his only reason for doing it. Hunted by heaven until the end, that is how I will be; chasing friendship with demons and trying to make peace between everyone, not just humanity, even though his duty should have been to his own kind... That is what killed that summoner."

Hunted by heaven huh?

And surprisingly... Rather then being failed by humans he was saying...

That he had failed a human?

"But you, this world?"

A laugh.

"As things are going, all of our fates will be unpleasant. Getting involved with demons will merely accelerate that process for you... It is likely why Phenex never told you of it's origins, because it never ends pleasantly."

---

Saki of the Tyrant-King's Blaze-Murdering Black-Dragon-Wave (Saki Prime)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"A-Ah yes, perhaps a drink would-!"

Visibly sweating now, the teacher that had perhaps said too much grips the cup with a free hand, quite clearly suffering some small pain from the experience, but also refusing to let it go with an endurance suited for one who was not afraid to take a joke too far, but often regretted that brazen confidence mere moments later.

"But perhaps it's a bit warm for such hot drinks?"

Yes.

Probably.

At the same time you didn't really care.

"But I'm just looking out for your health you know! I am positive the traits of an incubus can be made manifest by a demon of that strength."

So saying, he throws caution to the wind and downs the boiling sake without changing his expression.

It's impressive really, the stoicism of the drinking itself, and the hard-headed sense of determination that had forced him to accept the unspoken challenge head on; because as a teacher, he cannot yet allow himself to be phased by such a nonchalant method of payback. Even so, despite ESPers processing pain better than most, and shrugging off things as simple as liquid burns in seconds, it still takes him a bit to overcome the mental barriers that come with knowingly putting oneself through an awful situation for reasons that were shallow at best.

"But that's good, that fire in you is still going strong," laughing at the end, as his cup drains to nothing, the teacher's more sensei-like qualities resurface again, even if only for an instant, "Always be ready to fight back on all fields... But maybe go easier on the boiling next time?"

---

Remnant Saki #2 (Fujimoto)
Ryuumonbuchi Residence

"I've never had a five-star chef cook for me, so I can decisively say that the night has been good on all accounts."

Waving one hand in a cheerful way, her perma-smile back now that the flow of time seems to have returned to what it must be, the young woman that notices the staring eyes doesn't seem to be particularly bothered by it:

"Even beyond food, I've found some very interesting people here tonight. It was truly a rare chance, after all, how often do you find a genuine holy woman upstairs in a house of demon summoners?"

Eh?

She said it casually, as if it wasn't important; but at the same time the statement is just enough out of left field that it seems strange.

"How about you? Is this all proving worth it for you? I was told you weren't the super social type."

[Katie]

Mikagura Mika
Burning Tokyo

The situation is laid bare for me in an instant.

The only thing left to do is to prioritize—so let’s quickly run down what must be done. Nami is doing something plainly idiotic, and while I have a hunch as to what she is going to do, I would not like for that to happen. I trust her judgment, but… It can wait, just a bit. The herald and the girl, Kagura, they’re doing fine. To be more specific, reasonably well in the current circumstances.

The real problem is that of Sora and the woman she is currently defending, Liane. Sora is capable of much more than this, but her offense is stymied by the fact that she is forced to divert attention from a far past exhausted Liane. If she’s going to be that stubborn, I suppose, then I will happily spoil her for the sake of stopping the massive beast burning Tokyo to the ground.

“Babysit Nami, Genbu. I’ll patch up Liane.”

With that, I embed myself into the fray, running towards the woman who can’t even stand. For me, the solution is exceedingly clear. While Zerah’s power still burns within me, I might as well use it to the fullest. But most importantly, how I obtained it, piecing together his soul from the Soul Sea, is the solution to Liane’s predicament.

After all, she was torn apart—so for someone like me, who sees and knows all, piecing her back together shouldn’t be too difficult.

“Liane, don’t struggle. This’ll just be a bit.”

But as I dig through the Soul Sea, scanning for what once was Liane, adrift the waves I hear the call. As someone whose power is the closest to matching the natural human ability of Observation, there would be nothing that I could miss. This isn’t something that distracts me from my task of repairing Liane—I can do both at once without too much trouble—but it’s something unsettling.

After all, the man asking for help is the one that bears Amatsu-Mikaboshi’s Reason, and his opponent is Chronos’s summoner.

A tyrant who preys on the weak asks for the collective of humanity to aid them. Absolutely, undeniably foolish. Tyrants are few—but weaklings are many. The response he will get from the Soul Sea, of the billions of people damned because of their inability to be strong in contrast to the handful of those who could impose their will, is likely to be very little at best. In contrast, I can see that his opponent might have better luck, as awful as that idea may be…

Even so, this doesn’t directly concern me. The result of this will be something on my to-do list. Back to the task at hand.

Fixing Liane, and then saving Nami from whatever stupid shit she’s gotten into.

[Vritra]

Makoto Fujioka
Nakamura Residence
Night

Wrestling with Usami I can only laugh “Nyahaha that sounds like you’ve already give up, bad Usami even Chiaoko-nee hasn’t given up yet so for that double tickle torment!”

Smiling softly as I lose out in our continuous grapple and end up in a headlock I reach up and pat her head “Hehehe you sound like Chiaoko-nee but Chiaoko-nee makes funny faces despite the despite repeating to the point where she feels like there is only way, even if things are difficult that doesn’t mean it can’t be done. Ooooooh then again if you don’t change your thinking that means I get to play with Usami forever nyahahahaha proper or fun choices!” Laughing at the win win situation I stop struggling and flop back leaving us to simply lie on the ground staring up at the moon until Kimichi’s announcement.

“!

On the notes of things like that you should get ready Usami now comes food battle!”

Vibrating in anticipation I stand up and hold Usami to keep her from running away from the piggyback as I march off to food battle, mhmhm today is the day I also conquer food battle!